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Power is out for the fourth day for just under 37,000 Atlantic County residents. NBC10's Doug Shimell spoke to residents on Longwood Avenue that say everyone on their street got power back, but them. (Published Tuesday, July 3, 2012)

Thousands of South Jersey residents who lost power during severe weather might not get it back until next weekend, according to utility officials.

Storms struck the area early Saturday with heavy rain, dangerous lightning and strong winds with gusts of more than 70 mph.

Atlantic and Cumberland counties were hit hardest in New Jersey by the storm, which forecasters say was caused by a rare weather phenomenon known as a derecho: a fast-moving line of severe winds associated with a squall of violent thunderstorms.

Storms Impact Local Businesses

The fierce storms in South Jersey have taken a toll on local businesses. Many in Atlantic County were forced to close because of no power. Employers say the lack of electricity has meant lost revenue and no wages for workers. Some businesses hope to be reopened in the next 24 hours as utility crews work around the clock.

(Published Tuesday, July 3, 2012)

Many residents in Galloway Township said they were caught off guard by the storms and are frustrated with the county's response.

"I am just kind of disturbed that nobody has been here to check on us. We were out here when the storm hit until now and the first township crew came by when you all came by," Bill Willams told NBC10's Cydney Long.

About 24 people took refuge in at the Galloway Township Middle School shelter on Sunday until he and his family are alerted that they can safely return home.

Downed Trees Are a Costly Problem

NBC10 visited some of the hardest hit areas to survey the damage. In Cumberland and Salem counties, thousands of residents are still in the dark. People living in Pittsgrove say the downed trees are causing the biggest problem. One man tells NBC10 s Claudia Rivero he's looking at around $18K in damages to his property.

(Published Monday, July 2, 2012)

States of emergency remained in effect in Atlantic County and in several municipalities.

A curfew went into effect at 9 p.m. Sunday. It will remain in effect until 6 a.m. Monday morning for all Atlantic County municipalities with the exception of Atlantic City.

Citing the devastation caused by the storms, officials warned that some customers may not have electrical service back until late Friday. The priority was being given to hospitals, fire stations, water filtration plants and police stations.

Cooling Centers Help Storm Victims

The Thomas Wallace Middle School in Vineland has been turned into a cooling center for this weekend's storm victims. The school has food and cots for those without power. NBC10's Doug Shimell reports.

(Published Monday, July 2, 2012)

At the storm's peak, about 206,000 customers lost power. That was down to about 103,000 on Monday afternoon.

49K Atlantic County Residents Without Power

Trees are down all throughout Atlantic and Cumberland counties from a nasty storm that hit this past weekend. Some residents and businesses are still without power. A school on Alder Avenue in Egg Harbor Township has been opened as a cooling station for storm victims. NBC10's Terry Ruggles talks to residents about the clean up.

(Published Monday, July 2, 2012)

County

Customers Without Power

Atlantic

51,323

Burlington

1830

Camden

573

Cape May

5292

Cumberland

14,802

Gloucester

5527

Ocean

354

Salem

7448

Power Outages (per Delmarva)

County

Customers Without Power

New Castle

27

Sussex

7

Relief for Those Without Power

Atlantic County and Camden County have teamed up to organize a relief pod in Mays Landing for those who still don't have power from Saturday mornings storm. NBC10's Cydney Long reports.

(Published Monday, July 2, 2012)

Vineland, a town with its own power company -- Vineland Municipal Electric Untility, reported that about 5,000 customers are still without power. Over the weekend, 18,000 of the 25,000 Vineland customers lost power. WMEU's director of electric utilities Joe Isabella said they hope to have all power restored by July 4.

Gov. Chris Christie, who toured the area Saturday, asked residents to be patient amid the tough conditions. He also assigned the National Guard to deliver fuel for generators and water.

Cleaning Up Atlantic County After the Storm

Trees are down all throughout Atlantic and Cumberland counties from a nasty storm that hit this past weekend. Some residents and businesses are still without power. NBC10's Terry Ruggles talks to residents about the clean up.

(Published Monday, July 2, 2012)

Residents also were being urged to stay away from all downed wires, even if they don't appear to be active, and to not disrupt utility crews.

Officials said that the damage was more severe than what Tropical Storm Irene wreaked last summer.

The storm was blamed for the deaths of two boys, ages 2 and 7, in Salem County. They were camping at Parvin State Park in Pittsgrove with their families when a pine tree fell on their tent. The boys suffered serious injuries and died shortly afterward, authorities said. They were identified only as being from Millville and from Franklin Township.

Day 3 Without Power in Vineland

Many Vineland residents have gone three days without power because of a storm that happened around dawn Saturday morning. The storm knocked down numerous trees and including one in storm victim Paula Frie's front yard. Frie shares with NBC10's Doug Shimell how lucky she was.

(Published Monday, July 2, 2012)

The cleanup continued on Monday in Vineland as crews tried to find the electric lines feeding the most people and fix those first. The fact that power lines at individual homes have been severed has made this task more difficult.

Eric Cooper’s family is relying on a generator after the electrical line was pulled off the side of their house. The generator is just barely keeping their fridge cold.

“We’ve been blessed because people have been stopping by giving us water and trying to help us out,” said Cooper.

Aftermath of Weekend Storms

NBC10's Tim Furlong is in Linwood, New Jersey talking with residents about the storm that destroyed trees, damaged houses and caused power outages in most of the Atlantic County.

(Published Monday, July 2, 2012)

“I had to stay up at Runnemede,” said Paul Peterson, who claimed it was too hot to stay inside his house one more night. “They didn’t have any motels around here that were open so I ended up going to Runnemede to get one.”

The Vineland Ramada has been booked with utility crews and refugees of the storm.

“We were flooded with guests,” said John Scipione. “There were down wires sparking on the roads. People just drove off the road and ran in for shelter.”

South Jersey Cleans Up

Saturday's storms left much of South Jersey in the lurches. Thousands and thousands of residents and businesses are still without power following the deadly storms.

(Published Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012)

“It was just this big roar and it was the scariest thing I’ve ever heard,” said Joyce Conners, of Linwood.

Enzo Paludi of FJP Tree Service brought his tree clean up team from Huntingdon Valley in Montgomery County to help Atlantic County residents.

“This is probably one of the worst storms I’ve seen,” said Paludi. “You’ve got monster trees, 20 inch, 30 inch diameter trees lying on top of people’s houses. You’ve got a lot of mess and it’s going to take a lot of time to clean this up and do it right.”

State of Emergency in Atlantic County

A State of Emergency is in effect for Atlantic County after debris from severe storms damaged several homes and caused power outages. NBC10's Monique Braxton reports.

(Published Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012)

Clearing trees from houses can be dangerous because the branches on a tree on its side are like springs and can snap when cut. Trees are power lines are just as dangerous. Utility crews came from as far as Connecticut, Rhode Island, Maine and Texas to help out.

Neighboring Camden County is pitching in to help Atlantic County. Around 400 vehicles drove to an ice and water station in Mays Landing to receive a 40 pound bag of ice as well as a 40-count pack of water.

“Our guys are wiped out totally from the massive operation that’s going on,” said Bill Melfi of the Atlantic County Emergency Management. “We’ve staged electric company crews from all over the area plus there’s going to be power out for days. So this is the little bit of relief we can give to some people.”

Cleanup in Galloway Township

Residents in Galloway Township cleanup after heavy rains and powerful winds knocked down trees and power lines in Saturday's deadly storm. NBC10's Cydney Long reports.

(Published Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012)

To make matters worse, a truck carrying water coming from North Jersey on the Garden State Parkway overturned

“The fire companies responding to that incident are in the process of transporting that water to Atlantic County to get it on a truck and get it to us right away. So everybody in this county is participating.”

The station will be open from 8 am. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

Thousands Without Power in Atlantic County

The fierce storm terrified people who live in an Atlantic County mobile home park. The high winds tossed trees like toys, ripping down power lines. NBC10's Marisa Brahney reports on the big cleanup.

(Published Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012)

Residents in Pittsgrove, Salem County are also dealing with downed trees.

"I have 22 trees down," said Keith Myers. "It's going to take me probably a year to clean up the property."

Neighbor Steven Richards says it's going to cost him between $15,000 and $18,000 to remove the fallen trees from his yard.

Your Storm Photos

"I called my insurance company and they said they would give me $500. I don't have that kind of money. And I don't understand why this isn't a disaster area."

CLOSINGS

Atlantic City Public Schools Closed - Summer School; Custodial, maintenance, grounds and security to report to work at normal hours on Monday, July 2.